Writers Note: This story came from my twisted imagination. I don't know of any of this kind of religious ceremony.
“What happened next?” Brian asked, taking a step away from the ledge.
“Well, about a week later, an elderly woman was driving by in a car and noticed a naked woman just standing there on the middle of the road. The woman got out and frantically asked her what was wrong, because she thought that the woman was raped.
But she didn’t say anything and just pointed to the edge of the cliff. Before the old woman looked down, she asked her if she had an accident. The young lady just continued pointing, and finally the woman looked.
At the bottom of the cliff were 11 brand new cars, all turned upside down. In a row in front of the cars were twenty-one bodies and they were all covered in white blankets. All of the people’s heads were turned to the left. The woman recognized this as some kind of religious symbol, that these people had been proven angels of light. It occurred to her that someone was testing people who will survive on this earth after doomsday. Thirty people were reported missing, and only 22 came back.
The woman turned around to confront the woman, and then realized that she was gone.” Jansin turned to them. “Something’s out there guys.”
“Freaky,” AJ mumbled, taking another peek down at the edge of the cliff.
***********************************************
Kevin stopped reminiscing for a moment. “What does that have to do with us?”
“You guys were the greatest bunch of people I’ve ever met. You took me in as one of your own and treated me like a member of the family. I just want to repay that kindness. See, I remembered that today is the anniversary of that story. The TV crews will be coming here to shoot the area. Well, they’re in for a little surprise. One thing that I failed to mention to you guys is that I know a way down the hill. It doesn’t explain the cars…but you won’t feel uncomfortable down there for very long.”
Kevin signaled for the rest of the group to follow them. They had no idea what was going on, so Kevin vaguely filled them in on their way to the path. When they got to the path, Kevin was surprised that it didn’t really look like a path. The ground wasn’t even worn.
“Isn’t there supposed to be a path ‘round here somewhere?” Brian asked, looking down the steep hill.
“This is it,” Jansin replied, “this is all you’re going to get nature dud.”
It was a difficult journey on the way down, especially for the guy who was carrying Jansin. He had to keep himself balanced, along with Jansin.
The rest made it down easier than they thought they would. Most of them leapt forward, clinging onto trees on the way down, and some of them even slid down on their behinds. Everyone’s shoes were already pretty mucked up from before, so no one really cared.
It was broad daylight when they started going down, but by the time they were finished it felt like darkness had crept up on day. The forest was completely dark, giving it a haunting feel. AJ started shivering like a manic, even though he wasn’t scared. As they walked down farther, they saw the cars. Brand new Fords, Chevys, Toyotas all turned upside down in a giant circle. To prove that he wasn’t scared, AJ walked up to a Ford and stroked it with his hand.
“Oh, I think I felt a tingle!” he joked. “Hey, didn’t the man and woman drive and OLD Ford? If the woman went off the cliff in an old Ford, how come there’s none here?”
“I dunno,” Kevin said, approaching AJ from behind.
The gang walked single file in front of the cars. A guard placed a blanket for each person to lie on, on the ground. Then when they laid down, another blanket was placed on top of each of them. They all turned their heads to the left. When they did, Kevin noticed something.
“Hey Jansin,” he said, “how come you’re not lying here with us?”
“Someone has to stay behind and make sure that all these people get home safely.”
“No! Then I’m not lying here either!” Samantha exclaimed and wrapped her arms around her little brother.
“You have to. Go find mom, she’ll be ecstatic to see you. Don’t worry about me, my time is short.” With that, he injected her with a needle that he had taken from his shirt pocket.
“What are the needles for!” Brian screamed.
“Relax, Brian,” Jansin replied softly, “They’re here so that you don’t remember all of the awful things that have happened to you. The best way for me to repay you is to make you forget that I even exist. You are all very traumatized.” He injected Brian gently and felt him grow limp. Jansin turned his head to the left and moved on down the line.
When he got to Kevin, Kevin protested angrily. “I don’t want to forget you! You’re my friend…” tears streamed down his face.
“Trust me you’ll want to after all the pain I’ve caused. This is my way of saying sorry. You’re the only friend I’ve had in my entire life and you went through so much to help me escape…” tears were streaming down his face now too. “Gee thanks Perv, now you’re making me lose my manhood!”
Kevin tried to laugh through his tears. “I want to say that I’ll never forget you, but I can’t.”
Jansin hugged him and replied, “I know, I know. I’m going to be frank with you Kev. I’m dying; I only have two more months left to live. You’re going to be even sadder if you watch me die. Here, I want you to have something.” Jansin reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a recent picture of himself, smiling.
“We took this on the bus. I want you to have it. To remember that this was the only time in my life that I was happy. And, oh,” he began to untie his shoes. He wrote on them, “Thank you for letting me borrow these Nick, they’re so comfy!” and gave them to Kevin.
“Give these to Nick,” he said, “they’re pretty run down, but…” He sniffed again and looked up at the sky. “Oh gee.”
He held the needle above Kevin’s arm, then found that he just couldn’t do it. A guard helped him do it, and Jansin held Kevin’s hand the whole time saying, “Bye, Kevin, bye Kevin.”
**************************************************
Leighanne Wallace rummaged around Brian’s house, picking up a few last things that were hers. She didn’t really need to be there, she just made that excuse for herself. Tyke had become a depressed little dog, who refused to eat his Kibbles and Bits and despised walks now that he hadn’t seen his master for a whole month.
Leighanne was just as depressed as the dog. She cared very little why Brian broke up with her. What she wanted to know was where he was, and if he was okay. She had taped the phone conversation in case the police would need it, but she hadn’t given it over to the police. When she was lonely she would sit in Brian’s favorite chair and listen to the tape over and over.
Leighanne started to notice that at about the twentieth time she listened to it that Brian was on the verge of crying. That was not a natural reaction as she had learned from previous experiences. Plus, most of Brian’s girlfriends had broken up with him first. But she didn’t think that it was a legitimate reason to suspect anything.
Except when she turned up the end of the tape really loud, she could hear and woman talking and Brian crying really hard. That’s what made her suspicious. Even though she was blonde, it didn’t mean that she was dumb.
Leighanne turned on the TV and sat down in Brian’s chair with Tyke in her lap. Her hand ran rhythmically through Tyke’s fur as she listened to the news.
“Today marks the tenth anniversary of the legend of South Rivers. We are now at this tourist attraction, awaiting some late-breaking news. Apparently something was discovered in the ravine before we got here, and it has to do with the legend.”
They cut to a commercial break, which happened to be a Gap commercial. To Leighanne, all of the guys looked exactly like Brian.
The commercial break ended after five long minutes and Leighanne suspected something was up. She knew all about the legend, but it never really interested her until now.
“We have just been informed that someone discovered people down the ravine! Better yet, we find the missing Backstreet Boys! Chart-leaders N’Sync aren’t going to be to happy, but my seventeen-year-old daughter sure will be!”
Leighanne couldn’t hear the ecstatic woman any longer. She was in her own hysterics, screaming and jumping up and down with Tyke in her arms. Leighanne finally stopped when she saw Brian’s face appear on the screen.
He was lying in a stretcher, and they briefly showed how awkward it was to get the boys back up to safety.
One of the reporters asked him, “Mr. Littrell, what’s the first thing you’re going to do when you get home?”
Brian smiled at the camera from his position on the stretcher and promptly stated, “I’m going to see my girl Leighanne and change my underwear.”
Leighanne kissed the screen, tears flowing down her cheeks. “That’s my Brian, that’s my Brian.” Tyke had even gotten into the act, wagging his tail ferociously.
From the TV, she saw Kevin and Nick tied down to stretchers, conversing with each other.
“Hey, what’re you’re stinky shoes doing in my lap!” Kevin shouted at Nick.
But Leighanne didn’t stick around to hear the conversation. She was out the door and on her way to the hospital already.
Epilogue
Dedicated to Mags, all anti-N’Sync fans, and my sister, who loves ‘em.
“I just got news from the guards that everyone’s gone out to look for the guys. Even the one who told me this,” Ash reported.
“Excellent, we ought to catch them faster that way.”
“Oh, and before I forget, the guard got me those replacements that you wanted. I mean, of course we’ll get them and all, but we might need these guys. They’re butt-ugly though.”
“Well then I guess that we can’t use them for pleasure. Bring them in.”
Ash dragged them all in. Chains attached them to each other.
“What are your names?” Robyn asked, wrinkling her nose at them.
“Juztin.”
“Lahnce.”
“Chrees.”
“J.C.”
“Ugh.”
“You, why is your name, “Ugh”?” Robyn struggled to pronounce it, as if it were a real name.
“It’s not. I’m allergic to the drugs you gave me, Uuuggh.”
The last word sounded like an exaggerated burp to her. “Would you prefer crack, young man?”
“Wez N’sync,” Justin wheezed out of the blue.
“Really? Good for you, now shove it up your ass!”
“Some like it up there, some don’t, it all depends,” Lance replied.
“This iz not yooz conversations yo.”
“SHUT UP!” Robyn screamed. Suddenly an erratic popping noise occurred in the distance.
“What was that?” Ash whispered.
“Probably a gunshot.”
************************************************
Jansin waited outside of the large underground building. He watched it explode from the back end up to Robyn’s office. The whole time he recorded it for Kevin, and hoped one day that he would remember somehow.
When the fireworks ended, Jansin could see that the explosives had exposed the underground forces. He knew Robyn had died. And he knew that the hole in the ground represented the hole in his life that he had left behind. It was the only half he’d thought that he would know. The other half of his heart was undecided. It was unwhole because he had to say goodbye to the only friendship he’d known, but it was whole because he would die knowing that he had friends in his life.
*
*
Well, what do you think? Send some feedback my way, I appreciate it! Yell at me, prove me wrong, find my mistakes! I don't care! One thing about the timing in this story... I love big numbers...so that's why the timing is all mixed up. Try to ignore it like I do:)